Does anybody have a homemade mac and cheese recipe that's a hit?

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Yep- the one on the side of the mac& cheese box.

Seriously everyone likes Alton brown's recipes.

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I do a cheese sauce and pour over noodles
it is one of the house favs
they mix it them selves
I also use the cheese sauce on Eggs and veggies ex....
so basicaly a white sauce and I add moz, chedder, par and feta ....little salt , paperka ( sp )
sooooo ymmmy ...think well have it tomorrow when my dairy free guy is not here

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I just use low fat milk, low fat butter and kraft slices of American cheese that are approved by the fp the kids love it!

I've tried other cheeses and the kids loved them, but they were so stringy and messy

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I'll have find the recipe but I make the cheese sauce out of ricotta cheese and carrots!
I think it's the best ever!

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We can't use the Kraft blue box anymore and we can't use Kraft Singles anymore either. It can't say "cheese food" or "processed cheese" or anything like that. It can't have anything after the word "cheese" or we can't count it as anything other than the grain.

I use this one. http://www.food.com/recipe/paula-dee...-cheese-257276

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Melt 1 stick of butter with 1 pound of Velveeta cheese (I add a little white pepper to this mix, but the recipe doesn't call for it). Add 1 can of creamed corn and 1 can of "regular" corn and add 1 box of small shell noodles, cooked 'til ALMOST done. Pour into 9 x 13 or larger pan and top with bread crumbs. Bake until it starts to brown.

Corn in mac & cheese sounded disgusting to me, but it tastes SO good!

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I make a cheese sauce by using equal parts butter and flour (usually about 1/4 c). Melt butter, stir in flour.

Then add 1 1/2 c milk. Stir until thickened.

Add grated cheese (I use cheddar). Remove from heat, stir until combined.

Pour over cooked noodles. I bake for 30 mins at 350.

As an extra bonus, I have added chopped ham and cooked veggies for a fuller meal. Kids like it either way

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I found this simple recipe online and have been using it with the dcks since and they love it.

Boil macaroni and drain.
Pour some macaroni into an oven safe container, spread out to cover the bottom of the container. Sprinkle shredded medium cheddar cheese on top the macaroni. Keep alternating layering macaroni and cheese. I cover the top with enough cheese to cover all the macaroni. Then I pour whole milk over the entire top.
Cover with foil making the foil tent over the top so the cheese doesn't get stuck. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-25 minutes or until cheese is completely melted. Stir before serving.

Note: I use salad macaroni because my dcks like it better than the elbow type. I buy a block of medium cheddar cheese, cut off and shred what I need and freeze the rest for another meal. I found buying the block and shredding it myself cost less than buying preshredded cheese. I usually use one cup of milk to 3 cups of uncooked macaroni, but it will depend on how much macaroni you use and how creamy your dcks like their mac & cheese. The milk is what makes it creamy. It took me two times making this to find the right measurements that the dcks like. I found layering the cheese and macaroni makes the distribution more even then dumping them all together and mixing it which just clumps up the cheese. Hope this helps.

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The only kind that seems to be a hit with my DCKs comes in a blue and yellow box.

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Here it is!
Ingredients
1 cup steamed carrots or,
½ cup carrot puree
⅓ cup ricotta cheese
2 ounces sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons milk
1 cup cooked pasta

Instructions
Peel and wash the carrots. Cut into pieces. Steam until tender in the microwave or stovetop.
In a blender/food processor, add steamed carrots, ricotta cheese, sharp Cheddar cheese, and milk.
Pour cheesy veggie sauce over 1 cup cooked pasta.


I make multiple batches of the cheese sauce and freeze them. Then I just have to pull it out of the freezer, defrost and reheat.

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I use elbow noodles mostly, but I have used spirals.

Cheese sauce: Use the parts to make more if you want. This much sauce will do about 4-5 cups of noodles.
1 cup half and half (or real cream)
20-25 slices real american cheese
4 Tb cream cheese

Melt cheeses and cream in a sauce pan over low heat. Pour over drained noodles and stir gently. Let cool slightly and serve. The kids beg for more.

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This sounds interesting and I like the fact there are carrots added. But for those dcks who have sworn off veggies, does it taste like carrots?

I make a basic white sauce with whatever shredded leftover cheeses I have, which is usually cheddar, then I'll add some cooked zucchini or broccoli or maybe spinach, whatever I have handy. Mix it with cooked noodles(the kids like penne), top with cracker crumbs and bake for 30 minutes. The kids liked it. Well, except the ones who saw the veggies or don't like their food mixed.

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Can't taste the carrots at all in my opinion. And since they are pureed, they don't even know there are carrots in it. They give the sauce the orange color.

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I've tried so many recipes and it came out stringy and gross that I finally resorted to Annie's Mac n cheese with extra cheese grated on top.

Thanks for these tips! I make a homemade Alfredo sauce and I can't believe how easy that is to make!

Thanks again! I'll try the white sauce version.

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Oppps I didn't get far enough! There are some REALLY great ideas and recipes here! Wow! I'll try a bunch of them. Yay!

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I don't call it "mac&cheese" but my kids love pasta with just butter (or olive oil) and parmesan cheese.

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I make a pasta with olive oil and parmesan and 1 can of petite diced tomatoes with Italian seasonings. The kids love that, too

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